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Education update
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For Parents, Educators & Students
The New York Botanical Garden Launches Online Tool for Students The New York Botanical Garden recently launched a new online educational resource that brings the wonder of the Botanical Garden’s Enid A. Haupt Conservatory — the largest Victorian-style glasshouse in America, which displays plants in diverse natural habitats from tropical rain forests to arid deserts — into homes and classrooms around the world. Plant Hunters is a new, Web-based tool that provides a virtual exploration of the Haupt Conservatory and serves as a dynamic online educational resource in plant science. Created with support from the Verizon Foundation, this free tool is now accessible for family and classroom learning on the Botanical Garden’s Web site at: http://www.nybg.org/planthunters and on Verizon Thinkfinity, http://www.thinkfinity. org, a comprehensive educational Web site that provides thousands of free educational resources for teachers, parents and students. In this United Nations-declared “Year of Biodiversity,” Plant Hunters provides an important new resource for K-8 science education. “The New York Botanical Garden developed Plant Hunters as a way to extend the reach of its Children’s Education programs and resources to a global audience,” said Gregory Long, president of The New York Botanical Garden. “This engaging new tool will help students and families everywhere discover the beauty and importance of the world’s biodiversity by making the rich collections and wealth of information contained in the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory available across the country and around the world.” “Through the use of online technology children from across the country can virtually experience the wonders of The New York Botanical Garden,” said Verizon Foundation President Patrick Gaston. “We are proud to partner with the Botanical Garden on this valuable project and add it to the ever growing number of resources available on Verizon Thinkfinity.” Through Plant Hunters, families can supple-
ment their visits to the Haupt Conservatory by exploring 64 of the plants showcased there in more detail at home. The site is also intended to provide families unable to visit the conservatory with a rewarding educational experience. Plant Hunters enables users to experience the diverse plant life displayed in the conservatory, such as: the Palms of the Americas Gallery, which includes the largest collection of New World palms under glass; the Lowland Tropical Rain Forest Gallery and the Upland Tropical Rain Forest Gallery, which feature plant specimens used to treat human illnesses and illustrate the ethno-botanical study of how plants and people relate; the Deserts of the Americas and Deserts of Africa Galleries, which house plants such as cacti, agave, boojum trees and aloes that have adapted to dry and challenging climates; as well as plants adapted to life in the water in the Aquatic Plants and Vines Gallery. Plant Hunters combines digital illustrations and interactive games with expert-developed plant science content as an engaging way to teach users about the world’s plants. The site allows users to navigate the diverse desert and tropical galleries of the conservatory, watch videos with Botanical Garden scientists, listen to descriptions about each gallery in the conservatory, discover each plant’s origin and biome, and play seven different Plant Challenges. Children can advance from a “Beginning Biologist” to a “Cool Conservationist,” and finally to a “Professional Plant Hunter” as they navigate the site. Kids can record their success by printing an official scorecard. Both teachers and parents can integrate the Plant Hunters site into classroom and home-based learning by visiting the Classroom Resources page, which features downloadable classroom materials and activities that align with New York State and National Science Standards. # More information about the Garden’s Children Education programs can be found online at: www.nybg.org/edu/.
SEP/OCT 2010
Interested in Starting a School Garden? Join us Monday, October 11 (Columbus Day), for info sessions on starting a garden on your school grounds. Bring your family to enjoy The Edible Garden exhibition, see celebrity cooking demonstrations, chat with Children’s Education staff, and participate in gardening workshops. FREE for teachers, 20% discount for family members To RSVP, call 718.817.8157.
New school catalog now available! Year-round tours, programs, and activities for Pre-K through 8th-grade students and teachers Learn more at nybg.org/edu
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